2017 Ritz Hotel Visit

david.escoffier...

June 24, 2017

1021 view(s)

Disciples Escoffier China delegation have been fortunate enough to be able to visit some of Hotel Ritz. Having no appointments and not open to the regular public, they directly went in and asked to talk to Chef Nicolas Sale, the current Executive Chef. Chef Nicolas Sale, being a member of Escoffier France, welcomed us into his kitchen where we had the chance to talk to him and some of team members. The small tour included a visit to the Escoffier School, in the basement. It was truly a privilege to have been able to visit such a magnificent palace.

Here is a little history about the Ritz hotel where Chef Auguste Escoffier was the first Executive Chef back in 1898.

The hotel, which today has 159 rooms, was founded by the Swiss hotelier, César Ritz, in collaboration with Chef Auguste Escoffier in 1898. The new hotel was constructed behind the façade of an 18th-century town house, overlooking one of Paris's central squares. It was among the first hotels in Europe to provide a bathroom en suite, a telephone and electricity for each room. It quickly established a reputation for luxury, with clients including royalty, politicians, writers, film stars and singers. Several of its suites are named in honour of famous guests of the hotel, including Coco Chanel and Ernest Hemingway who lived at the hotel for years. One of the bars of the hotel, Bar Hemingway, is devoted to Hemingway and the L'Espadon is a world-renowned restaurant, attracting aspiring chefs from all over the world who come to learn at the adjacent Ritz-Escoffier School. The grandest suite of the hotel, called the Imperial, has been listed by the French government as a national monument in its own right. (text from wikipedia)